Not pre-FOPA, not pre-AWB… September 2016. The Democratic Party of Benewah County Idaho, for at least a brief dispensation of time, decided that a gun raffle might generate some funds for the local party chapter. Not a BB gun, not a .22, not a six-shooter… a semi-automatic rifle (or as the Democrats say “assault rifle”)… with a detachable high capacity magazine.

One should recognize that Idaho is a strong 2nd Amendment state (at least outside of three little blue dots on the map); The Gem State is a bright and shining bastion of freedom and liberty when it comes to the right of the people to keep and bear arms. The average American might think that they have a healthy supply of weapons and ammo; until they meet the average rural Idahoan.

Nevertheless, the party platform is what it is; a progressive, left-leaning blood lust to subjugate liberty-minded and freedom loving Americans by incrementally stripping away their ability to exercise the unalienable right to protect life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness from the tentacles of governmental tyranny. Raffling weapons at a Democratic Party information booth for the purpose of raising money demonstrates that the liberal, progressive voter base is not as attached to gun control measures as is the head of the snake. The rank-and-file voters will support these measures on the ballot out of blind allegiance to the agenda, but deep down inside there are liberals and progressives who can embrace the fundamental right of personal weapon ownership.

It is reasonable to assume that the winner(s) of the raffle would need to transfer the weapon through an ATF 4473 from a licensed dealer. Although, in Idaho, a cash-and-carry sale on any of the listed weapons would have been perfectly lawful. Still, the left engages the conservative right on the firearms issue with a relentless barrage of attacks comprised of media sensationalizations, cherry-picked statistics, and mind-numbing logic on the efficacy of the “Gun Free Zone”. In the midst of this circus of smoke and mirrors, someone, somewhere thought it would be a good idea to raffle off a semi-automatic, high capacity, high power instrument of death to raise some extra cash.

Anthony Dephue lives, works, and plays in and around Boise, ID. Holding dear the pursuit of life and liberty, he is an active participant with and supporter of patriot-minded and 2nd Amendment groups. The unfettered right of law abiding citizens to keep and bear arms is, as the Founders intended, the last and final stop-gap to runaway tyranny from a strong central government; it is the foundation by which all other God-given and enumerated rights derive lasting efficacy.